new illustrations for some old classics...PippiI think Lauren Child's collage-style art is the perfect complement to Astrid Lindgren's offbeat story about every child's favorite 9-year-old Swedish heroine, PIPPI LONGSTOCKING. Take a look at some of her illustrations...Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindren, illustrated by Lauren Child (2007)

AnneBut I have to admit, when I first saw Lauren Child's depictions of Anne Shirley on the covers of Puffin's reissue of the Anne of Green Gables books I wasn't sure if the fit was as perfect. Child's style is so contemporary and Montgomery's books are so old-fashioned and classic! A couple of things made me reconsider my initial impression:#1-This quote by Anne Shirley: "There's such a lot of different Annes in me. I sometimes think that is why I'm such a troublesome person. If I was just the one Anne it would be ever so much more comfortable, but then it wouldn't be half so interesting."#2-This fact: did you know that Astrid Lindgren loosely modeled Pippi Longstocking after Anne Shirley?? After discovering this tidbit in a Rutger's article, I think it was genius that the same illustrator would draw both characters. And I can't honestly think of anyone better than Child - she really captured their spirits.

It's exciting to know that Lauren's book covers will draw a new generation of young reader's to Lucy Maude Montgomery's classic stories...don't you think so?

Austrailian born Polly Borland, an award winning and widely acclaimed photographer, is one of the few people to have been allowed into Buckingham Palace to photograph the Queen. Her beautiful work is a perfect compliment to Lauren Child's unique artwork and storytelling.

The finished product of their first collaboration was a stunningly original and fresh interpretation of a classic Hans Christian Anderson tale, THE PRINCESS AND THE PEA (2006)

...REAL Princesses do not grow on trees. You have to WAIT for one to come to you. And if one DOES, you have to discover if she is a REAL Princess.

The queen having the servants ready the bed ready with 12 feather mattresses...and one "small pea-green garden pea".

The photographs are of Child's miniature modeled scenes, which look like diorama theatre sets. It's like stepping into a world of paper dolls dressed in intricately patterned costumes, positioned in delightfully furnished rooms of a royal dollhouse mansion! Girls of all ages (and maybe their aspiring Princes-to-be sibling brothers) will love this book.

When you open this book you enter an enchanting forest with a charming cottage, captured beautifully by Polly Borland's photography. Emily Jenkins was the set designer...The sets for the book took over a year to make. The doll-sized cottage, complete with winding staircase, is in reality about a metre tall. Real turf was grown for the roof. Special wallpaper and fabrics were designed and printed, featuring woodland motifs. Exquisite miniature furniture, including the three bears' beds, chairs and porridge bowls, were carved, crafted and painted by Emily and her team of designers. Tiny slippers were sewn, cushions stuffed and bed linen edged and folded. The tiny spoons were carved specially – even the porridge is real!

And there's a twist to Lauren Child's retelling. It has to do with red shoes. Goldilocks' mother tells her:

"Remember these three things.Do notstray from the path

Be back in time for breakfast

and whatever you do - make sureyou look after your little red shoes"

Isn't the BABY BEAR cute???

The Goldilocks doll, Mother and Father Bear, and Baby Bear were created by world-famous doll maker, R. Joan Wright .

Has anyone been following the Casey Anthony trial? I hate to admit it, but I’ve gotten transfixed. This has only happened a few times with me: during the OJ and the Menendez brothers’ trials.

How does this relate to writing, you ask? A lot. I’m interested in analyzing what goes into a good mystery or thriller, or simply how to write great, prolonged suspense.A complex trial like this one, with so many unexpected twists and turns, and with such rampant lies and weird pathology, by its very nature, is buzzing with suspense.

How could a pretty, popular mom kill her child? Is Casey Anthony a violent sociopath, or was her two-year-old daughter's death a swimming accident? There were no eyewitnesses, so the prosecution must build its case on what's called “circumstantial” evidence—putting together pieces of the puzzle, such as a search on the home computer for chloroform 84 times! Or the question of why would one need to apply 3 layers of duct tape to a drowning victim. And why did this mother decide to throw her father and brother under the bus by saying they did nefarious things to her, when all along the father and brother were her staunch defenders? And then, there’s the meter reader, Roy, who found the little girl, Caylee’s skull, buried up to its eyeholes, in a trash dump. If you believe the defense theory, he arranged the bones and duct tape to get the cash reward (That he never received). If you believe the prosecution, Roy was the hero, who finally found the remains of little Caylee, and helped bring her one step closer to justice. The way the lawyers present their witnesses, and all of the forensics testimony, is truly fascinating to me. One person is a hair expert. Another is an expert in detecting volatile gases. And they all want to drivel on about their gadgets.

Will I ever try to tackle writing trial scenes? A very intimidating idea! One would have to speed through the typical minutia of an actual trial to get to the meat, where someone’s sobbing on the stand, or obviously lying, and perjuring themselves. In the Casey Anthony trial, even though spectators have traveled from all over to get in the courtroom, many have fallen asleep from the droning “experts” only to be kicked out for snoring.

Has anyone tried to write a trial scene? To Kill a Mockingbird comes to me. Have you learned how to write suspense from watching a trial, used forensics in a scene, or written a mystery with any of these aspects? Anyone recall a children’s or YA novel that includes some part of a trial? Dish here.

"I always wanted a brother, although I doubt he would have been as nice as Charlie. I made him seven because it is one of my favorite ages. I never think of Lola as precocious and certainly not brat-ish - she is one of those children who is just very curious and has quite a strong sense of self. Lots of four-year-olds are like her. There is a retro feel to the whole Charlie and Lola world; the subject is simple and always about the tiny things in life. Tiny things, which can seem very big when you are four or seven."

- Lauren Child

Each one of Lauren Child's Charlie and Lola books starts, "I have a little sister, Lola. She is small and very funny" (she's four and she drinks pink milk!) Who can resist that?? According to Child, this sibling pair is "everychild - their stories talk about problems most children can relate to." In each story, we find patient Charlie in the predicament of having to come up with inventive ways of persuading Lola to try new food, go to bed, or see the importance of going to school. The character of Lola is based on a little girl Child observed on a train while she was travelling in Denmark.

If you've read any other Lauren Child books (see yesterday's post), you'll immediately recognize her style: the witty humor and dialogue, mixed media illustrations, and text that wanders across the page.

(My son and daughter, David and Mary, were a lot like Charlie and Lola. David was definitely patient with his sister, although Mary wasn't quite as energetic or persistent as Lola... when one of them had a friend over - and then permanently when we added Little Brother Jonny into the mix - they had to adapt to the dynamic that came with being three, like in SLIGHTLY INVISIBLE!)

"Oh," says Lola. "Would you maybe like to have a tea party instead?"

The four original books by this prolific British children's book author/illustrator were adapted as a cartoon television series in 2005 in Britain. The episodes (now available on DVD) were also shown on Playhouse Disney here in the U.S. and have been as popular with parents as with their kids. The characters, voiced by children with adorable British accents, are endearing. Her titles are hilarious...